Most common 2003 Infiniti FX35 problems
Share of the 61 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Infiniti FX35 complaints by model year
Best FX35 years: 2011, 2010, 2012. Years to avoid: 2004, 2005, 2003. Compare all years →
2003 Infiniti FX35 recalls (10)
Air bags › Passenger side frontal › Cushion
Nissan North America, Inc. (INFINITI) is recalling certain 2003 INFINITI FX35, 2006-2008 FX35 and FX45 vehicles that previously received a replacement front passenger air bag assembly under recall number 20V-008.
Remedy: INFINITI will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag module, free of charge. The recall began on April 19, 2021. Owners may contact INFINITI customer service at 1-800-662-6200.
Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2001-2003 Maxima, 2002-2006 Sentra, 2002-2004 Pathfinder, 2007-2011 Versa Sedan and Versa Hatchback, 2001-2004 Infiniti I30 and I35, 2002-2003 Inifiniti QX4, 2003-2008 Infiniti FX35 and FX45 and 2006-2010 M35 and M45 vehicles.
Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflators with alternate desiccated inflators, free of charge. The recall began February 12, 2020.
Air bags › Frontal › Passenger side › Inflator module
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2003-2008 Infiniti FX35 and FX45, 2003-2004 Infiniti I35, 2006-2010 Infiniti M35 and M45, and 2007-2011 Nissan Versa vehicles, originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas,…
Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began December 21, 2017. All owners should receive a second notice by May 15, 2017.
Air bags
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2001-2003 Nissan Maxima, 2002-2004 Pathfinder, 2002-2006 Sentra, 2002-2003 Infiniti QX4 and I35, 2003 FX35 and FX45, and 2001 I30 vehicles. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on June 15, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Air bags
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2003-2004 Infiniti I35, 2003-2005 FX35 and FX45, and 2006 M35 and M45 vehicles originally sold, or currently registered, in geographic locations associated with high absolute humidity.
Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on June 16, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Exterior lighting › Headlights
During a canadian compliance test, certain sport utility vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, 'lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.' the headlamp assemblies do not meet the headlamp photometric values requirements of the standard.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the headlamp assemblies. The recall began on December 18, 2006. Owners May contact Infiniti at 1-800-662-6200.
Show 4 more recalls
Exterior lighting
During a canadian compliance test, certain sport utility vehicles failed to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, 'lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.' a rear combination lamp assembly did not meet the requirements.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the rear combination lamp assemblies. The recall began on December 18, 2006. Owners May contact Infiniti at at 1-800-662-6200.
Fuel system, gasoline
On certain passenger and sport utility vehicles, the fuel filler hose May crack and result in fuel leakage from the hose while refueling.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the fuel filler hose. Recall began on February 27, 2006, for Nissan owners, and on March 13, 2006, for Infiniti owners. Owners May contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261 or Infiniti at 1-800-662-6200.
Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Disc › Caliper
On certain sport utility vehicles, the front brake caliper mounting bolts May not be adequately tightened. This could result in one or both of the caliper mounting bolts loosening.
Remedy: Dealers will tighten the front brake caliper mounting bolts to ensure that they are secure. Owner notification began on January 5, 2004. Owners should contact Infiniti at 1-800-662-6200.
Power train › Automatic transmission
On certain sport utility vehicles, the bolts which attach the propeller shaft(s) to the transaxle and differential(s) May not have been adequately tightened.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the propeller shaft bolts and tighten the bolts to the proper specification. Owner notification began May 27, 2003.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into 3 possible defects involving the 2003 Infiniti FX35:
Air Bag Inflator Rupture
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by Takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag…
Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited.
Air Bag Inflator Rupture
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by Takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag…
What 2003 Infiniti FX35 owners say
Air bags
Ever since I bought my infiniti the air bag light flashed rapidly on the dash. I received notice a couple years ago about the air bags being recalled.I took my vehicle to Roseville Infiniti and supposedly the airbags were replaced I expected it to take a couple hours it was in and out in under 2 hours. When i left the deLership the light was still blinking and never quit blinking. My concern was to call and ask why it was still blinking ? I was told that it probably wasnt reset however the air bag was replaced . I was in an accident recently and it was a serious frontal collision and not one airbag went off . I was seriously injured my hand was fractured my left leg was hurt and I had a concussion and cervical sprain this all would have been prevented had my airbags deployed.
My airbag light came on again recently, without any incident and I am concerned that this means my car is now unsafe. This happened in 2017 and it was a repair that was made without charge. I have now been informed that it would cost over $1,000 to repair, but I think this is a malfunction that should be covered by the Dealer, as there has been an issue with the airbags before.
Locks & latches
Have a 2003 Infiniti FX35, and the electronic locks now do not fully lock or unlock the rear doors. First one door went out now the other. My sense is that a small child or elderly person in the back could be in serious danger if there were an immediate need for them to be evacuated. With only one manual lock for the entire vehicle (on the driver's door) a person would have to go across the car to manually unlock the passenger side rear door in an emergency (in addition to reaching behind the driver's seat for the driver's side rear door). Since I see this as a significant safety issue, I believe NHTSA should investigate and order an appropriate recall. If you peruse various message boards on the web, you will see that this is a rather significant issue associated with many Nissan products (the sister murano is also so afflicted).
Power door lock actuators operate intermittently. There has been several instances having the rear child door lock engaged and we could not open the rear doors from the outside because the actuators failed. Children had to exit out the front by climbing over the front seats. While at a parking garage a large vehicle parked close to the passenger side of our car and could not open doors to re-enter. Again, intermittent operation of power door lock actuators , both front and rear driver side door locks failed. We had to enter the vehicle through the rear tailgate/hatch. Took vehicle in for service and lock were operating at that time and manufacturer recommended replacing the door lock actuators. Still to this day the locks operate intermittently, and now have 115,000 miles.
Body & structure
I bought my vehicle used (2003 fx 35) in 2010 and have experienced what seems to be some very common complaints associated with the vehicle . Defects that the local dealers (mcallen , texas) have refused to address. 1) cracked dash. Several large cracks running the length of the dashes. 2) faulty car lock actuators. This seems absolutely ridiculous that the problems can be so prevalent (check the web) , but yet Nissan fails to take responsibility for it. I can understand the dash not being a hazard , however, the locks can be. I cant even open my hatch, and this is suppose to be a luxury vehicle?
Tl contact owns a 2003 Infiniti FX35. The contact stated that the vehicle has approximately 13 cracks across the dashboard. There are also approximately 4 cracks near the front passenger side air bag. The dealer and manufacturer were notified, but could not correct the failures. The VIN was unknown. The current mileage was 44,000 and failure mileage was 38,000. Updated 5/6/08 updated 05/06/08
2003 Infiniti FX35 engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 5-speed automatic | RWD | 15 / 22 / 17 |
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 5-speed automatic | 4WD/AWD | 15 / 20 / 17 |
EPA ratings. Class: SUV.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2003 Infiniti FX35 a good car?
Based on 61 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2003 FX35 rates avoid: 2.1× as many complaints as a typical year of the FX35 at the same age. It is one of the FX35 years we suggest avoiding. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 2003 Infiniti FX35?
The air bags — 13 complaints, 21% of all complaints for this model year. Next are the locks & latches (12) and body & structure (8).
How many recalls does the 2003 Infiniti FX35 have?
There are 10 recalls for the 2003 Infiniti FX35, the most recent from March 4, 2021 (cushion). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Infiniti FX35?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2011, 2010 and 2012. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2004, 2005 and 2003. See the full Infiniti FX35 years comparison.
At what mileage do 2003 Infiniti FX35 problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 67,000 miles; 38% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.